4th Ed D&D In London

A Homebrew 4e D&D game

A Rock And A Hard Place

Will The Ceiling Become the Floor?

The party gathered around the circle in the statue room, joined now by Sabbat Fau. Elwanen went to guard the entrance against possible reinforcements.

Sabbat Fau and Theron between them concluded that with the death of Helvec, the Elf, the circle was losing it's potency. Aran Thule also chimed in, saying he knew a thing or two about magical traps and that he reckoned with a bit of help he could disarm it. Working together, and with the use of some handy sand, the trap was disarmed and the circle faded away into nothingness.

Aran stepped into the circle and used his lockpicks to unchain the two boys. His small stature and nimble fingers made quick work of what had looked like quite a secure chain.

As the boys stepped out the circle, the company tensed for a moment – but the ceiling stayed put, and no rumble of falling rock came to their ears. However, the shadowy figure that they had met before formed silently out of the shadows on one side of the room. A great wind seemed to be affecting it, and the dark shadows were ripped away leaving it's face much more human looking and it's robes grey, rather than black.

"Thank you," he said. "That accursed elf had me under a compulsion – I aided you as best I could but I wish I could have struck the deathblow on him myself. I am glad these two innocent children have been freed."

Staring at his newly revealed face, both Des and Aran had the same thought – the figures pictured on the tombs upstairs, this face, and the face of the children bore an uncanny resemblance. A…familial resemblence.

Aran asked "Do you boys know anything your grandfather? Or possibly grandmother?" Seeing their baffled looks, he explained that a resemblence was clear, and the spirit immediately guided everyone through to the room that Helvec had been conducting the ritual in. At his prompting, the two boys placed their hands on the risen platform, and as they did so it began to slide into the ground, leaving behind a lump of misshapen rock.

This rock then began to melt down into the shape of a warhammer, and the Kaius Thunderhammer was revealed.

The spirit spoke again, saying "Long has this hammer been waiting to be held again. The scions of the Kaius Dynasty are here to take their place in defence of their ideals."

However, the two boys looked a little unsure, and Richard spoke up, replying "But we're far too young!" He glanced around, spotting Rangrim comparing his own Dwarf-wrought hammer with the one lying in front of him. "You take it!" cried Richard. "You take it, and wield it, and when we're ready we'll send for it and you can return it to us!"

Rangrim was, understandly, happy with this arrangement.

The spirit, it's job done, faded back into the stonework of the underground tomb, and the party gathered up the assorted treasure from their fallen foes, including the ritual book. Sabbat was all for keeping it for study, realising it concerned rituals of power for those willing to make bargains, but upon further discussion it was decided that a ritual book that contained a single ritual that spoke of days of blood sacrifice was not something he wanted to have in his possession – the book's pages were burnt.